The National Association for the Education of Young Children states that: “Developmentally appropriate practices result in the process of … making decisions about the well-being and education of children based on at least three important kinds of information or knowledge.”

1. What is known about child development and learning.
2. What is known about the strengths, interests and needs of each individual child.
3. What is known about the social and cultural contexts in which the child lives.

With all this in mind how can parents help to integrate “Developmentally Appropriate Practices” into their every day lives with children?  Each new level of mastery leads to new challenges.  Early childhood is the prime age for learning.  The following are some social/emotional activities parents can do with their children.

Infants: Crawling Creatures – Since crawling is so important to the development of both hemispheres of the brain, it is important to encourage very young children to get down on the ground and act out the movements of various creatures such as dogs, cats, and snakes using their hands, feet and their body.

Toddlers: Magic Mirror – This activity is based on the oriental exercise called “Tai Chi,” an ancient Chinese martial art form which has evolved into a graceful form of exercise movements.  The parent acts as a mirror and the child who is facing them copies the gentle exercise movements of the parent.  Encourage the child to do the movements slow and exaggerated.  This activity starts with a bow and ends with a bow, then parent and child change places with the child doing the movements and the parent doing the copying.

Preschoolers: Snow Storm – Give each child a piece of newspaper.  Have them lay on the floor pretending to sleep using the newspaper as a blanket, then pretend to take a bath using it as a towel, at breakfast have them use it as a napkin.  Then pretend to go outside to walk to school using it as a jacket.  Now the fun starts!  Pretend it is starting to snow, tell them to tear the newspaper into “snowflakes” and throw the pieces in the air.  Have the children grab pieces together to make a “snowball” to throw at each other.  Then here comes the snowplow, have the children gather all the “snow” and put it in a garbage bag.

In recent years, a trend toward increased emphasis on formal instruction in academic skills has been proposed in early childhood programs.  There is a growing body of research which has emerged recently affirming that children learn most effectively through a concrete play oriented approach that encourages language and literacy, physical, cognitive, and social/emotional development. The above activities provide a pathway for children to learn about themselves and their world.  They not only nourish understanding, but they also develop children’s abilities to symbolize their experiences.

“Every time we teach a child something, we keep him from inventing it himself… that which we allow him to discover by himself… will remain with him.”

(Jean Piaget)